“It is always an honour to represent your school or country … ” — An interview with MGS tennis player Joy Chia

By Les Tan/Red Sports

Joy Chia, 15, was a member of the Methodist Girls’ School B Division team that recently beat Raffles Girls’ School 3-2 in the B Division final. Joy is also a national age-group tennis player and has been playing tennis for eight years since the age of seven.

A hectic schedule sees her train four to five times a week and when she is home, she finishes her work so that she can be in bed by 10.30pm every day.

“So I can concentrate better during class,” said Joy.

Her dream is to make it into the professional women’s circuit and she is currently preparing for the ITF Junior Circuit. She hopes to represent Singapore in the next Youth Olympic Games.

Up to the day of the B Division final, Joy was not expected to play because she was in Sri Lanka representing the country.

Joy flew back from Sri Lanka on the morning of the B Division final which was scheduled for that afternoon. We catch up with Joy to fill us in on the drama of that day.

Red Sports: Describe the events leading up to your returning to Singapore in time to play for MGS in the B Division final and the reaction of your teammates.
Joy Chia: It was actually a last-minute decision to return to Singapore. The tournament in Sri Lanka surprisingly finished earlier than expected. My teammates had to come back to Singapore to prepare for their ITFs, so they changed their flight back to Thursday morning — the tournament ended on Wednesday — and so I changed my flight to return with them.

I then realised that I could play for my school during the (B Division) finals. That morning, when I arrived in Singapore, I called my school coach to notify him, but told him to keep it a secret from my teammates as I wanted to surprise them.

During that afternoon, I made my way to the Kallang Tennis Centre and made my appearance. I was really happy as I could play for my school and that they warmly welcomed me back.

When were you first chosen to represent Singapore in tennis?
When I was young, I would occasionally go overseas to neighbouring countries such as Malaysia to play junior tournaments with my coaches and teammates. However, the first tournament that I was officially sent to by the Singapore Tennis Association was during 2009.

What are the competitions you’ve played in for Singapore?
I have played mostly junior tournaments, like the Under-14 category and recently, the Under-16 category. However, this year, I was lucky enough to represent Singapore in the Federation Cup tournament.

The next competition I will be going for is at the end of April. I will be travelling with two other teammates for the Junior Federation Cup Qualifying in India.

Playing for your country and playing for your school each has its own special thrill and honour. Can you describe the feeling for each for you?
It is always an honour to represent your school or country, and no matter what, I would always try to do my best to achieve the best results.

However, playing for my country feels more pressurizing, as the players are much better and much more intimidating. Playing for my school also has its good points. For example, more of my friends and team/school mates would be there to support me, and thus, there is less pressure.

Every time you play overseas against international players, what strikes you most about your competitors?
I feel like the international players are much more intimidating. This is because I know that they are always prepared and always up for a fight. Some of them train every day and do not have to go to school. No matter where they are from, I always know that every match would be tough.

If you didn’t play tennis, what other sport could you imagine yourself representing school for?
When I was young, I actually took up swimming and tennis, but when it was time, I had to choose between the two sports. In the end, I chose tennis as I really enjoyed my time on the court, and wanted to focus on my tennis so that I could achieve my dream of becoming a professional tennis player. So, I guess that if I did not play tennis, I would probably be swimming now.

So how did it feel to lift the B Division Tennis Championship trophy?
I was ecstatic. It always feels good to be a champion, but i would also like to thank my teammates, as the B Division was not a one-man show. Without my teammates, we would not have achieved this.